World gold medals for Loughborough athletes
AFTER playing spectator to a host of British and Loughborough gold medals over the past three days, Olivia Breen claimed one all of her own in Monday’s morning session at the World Para Athletics Championships in London.
Clearly intent on leaving her mark on the championships, Breen dominated proceedings in emphatic style, opening up with 4.61m before sailing out to 4.72m in round three, a personal best at that point by 2cm.
With thoughts of the runway in Rio long banished, and with the backing track of thousands of screaming schoolchildren, round four saw a huge leap of 4.81m, a jump which distanced her from the rest of the field with two rounds to spare and all but secure the win.
Breen said: “I have been jumping really well this year and it really has been my best season ever. I knew what I needed to do, and I’ve put all the hard work in so I was just telling myself to get the job done. I knew I had it in me to win gold; I always give 100% so I am over the moon to do it; it has all come together at the right time.”
“My family and friends are here so it is amazing to share this moment with them. I want to say a big thank you to my coach Aston Moore who has been amazing and helped me improve my jumping – the other coaches I’ve worked with were great and really pushed me on too.”
Breen’s golden success makes it six gold for Loughborough athletes over the the course of the opening few days.
Long jumper Stef Reid lead the way in the T44 long jump - a jump of 5.40m in round three securing the title ahead of Dutch rival Marlene van Gansewinkel.
Reid was ruled out of the 2015 World Championships in Doha through injury and said she over- whelmed to secure her first world title.
“I’m so overwhelmed – I have been doing this for 11 years now - so it is so satisfying to win this gold medal. A lot of athletes never get to do this so I am ever so grateful that I get the chance to do this.
“It does go to show that if you work hard at something time after again, it will pay off. I was well-prepared and I like to think I put the pressure on early in the competition – I just really enjoyed it out there.”
Hollie Arnold entered the championships as a twotime F46 Javelin world champion and the world record holder in the class, threw a magnificent series to become a triple world champion.
Asserting her dominance from the very first throw with 41.38m – a championship record – last year’s Paralympic champion followed up with 42.13m, before launching to 43.02m in round four to add 1cm to her own F46 world record.
She said: “That was a fantastic series for me. I went out there to smash it and I did. It was great to get the world record; I knew that fourth throw was close but I wasn’t sure if I’d got it. The support of the crowd was absolutely amazing – I’m really delighted.”
There was also gold in the T42 200m for Richard Whitehead - he broke out slower than usual before eventually reaching top-end speed, putting daylight between him and the field to come home in 23.26, a championship record time for his fourth world title.
He followed that up with a bronze medal in the T42 1oom final.
Sophie Hahn secured her first 200m global title in a new world record time of 26.11 in the T38 200m
“It feels phenomenal; I never imagined I’d get the world record. It doesn’t matter about times as long as I got the gold; I’ve been running very well this year and have a great team behind me. It feels fantastic. I am so happy. The noise was phenomenal out on the track, I am so proud.”
On what he described as an ‘absolutely incredible’ night inside the London Stadium, Jonnie Peacock claimed back his T44 100m world title in magnificent style.
Slower out of the blocks than usual, it was the USA’s Jarryd Wallace who made the early ground on the field, with Germany’s Johannes Floors going well from lane seven. Moving through the gears at the 40m point, Peacock roared past Wallace before being chased down by Floors. Never in doubt once the lead was his, a dip for the line saw 10.76 flash on the big screen to confirm the victory.
Peacock said: “I was feeling some serious cramp in warm up – my hamstring was going which I why I kept stretching out. I’m just thankful that I finished the race; I guess the noise really does help it. I think we keep proving that events need to be held in Great Britain – this has been absolutely incredible.”